


Out of Curiosity

by Abbie



Series: Sleeping With A Friend [3]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Bisexuality, Curiosity, F/M, Friends With Benefits, Friendship, Kissing, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-20
Updated: 2014-07-20
Packaged: 2018-02-09 15:36:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1988340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Abbie/pseuds/Abbie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tommy and Felicity indulge their curiosity and take their friendship somewhere new.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Out of Curiosity

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MacyAudenStar](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MacyAudenStar/gifts).



> First line prompted by Macyaudenstarr

"So. You wanna make out?"

Felicity cut her eyes at Tommy, expression deadpan to hide her amusement.

They lay back together on his bed, Tommy sitting up against the headboard with the wireless controller to his Xbox in hand, Felicity reclined against the mound of pillows as she watched him get his ass repeatedly kicked by a dragon. She was a terrible backseat gamer, but it was the only way she liked to play most of the time.

"Really, Tommy? Have we reached a new level of bored?" Felicity smirked up at him, her loose curls tickling her cheek, hands folded calmly over her stomach.

He raised an eyebrow, smiling down at her, and shrugged. “Maybe. Besides, haven’t you ever been curious?”

Felicity’s brow screwed up and she squinted at him. Leveraging a little onto one elbow, she bit her lip and said, “Oh my god, you’re _serious_. Curious about what exactly, Tommy? You’re my best friend.”

He set his controller aside on the bedstand, keeping his eyes on hers. “Yeah, and you’re mine. But haven’t you ever even _wondered_? Because I’m not gonna pretend, I’ve definitely wondered what it’d be like to kiss you.”

She scooted up a little further on the pillows, scrutinizing him in surprise. “Really? _Me_? I never—I wouldn’t have thought—”

Tommy’s eyebrows went up and his jaw slackened, genuine shock widening his eyes. “You’ve really never thought about kissing me before?” Suddenly, the tips of his ears reddened and he went very stiff. “…Oh my god, I just made everything _horribly_ awkward, didn’t I. Did I just—just mess us up? Wow, um—”

"No!" Felicity’s scoffing reply and gentle smack to Tommy’s stomach were reassuringly quick. "I mean, maybe a little awkward, because I was absolutely not expecting that, like… at _all_ , but—but we’re still _us_ Tommy.” She sat up more, nervously tucking her hair behind her ear. “I mean, that’s actually kind of why I wasn’t expecting this. You really are my best friend, and I just never… thought this would ever be different than that?”

Tommy’s brows pulled together and he cocked his head to one side. “Wait, that’s not really what I meant, though. I’m not, like, confessing I’m in love with you or trying to make you my girlfriend instead of my best friend. I was just… curious.”

Felicity’s eyes searched his face, and she bit her lip. “You just… what, randomly wondered one day what it would be like if we kissed?”

Tommy shrugged a little awkwardly. “…Yeah?”

Laughing incredulously,  Felicity shook her head. “You ever have this thought about your New York best friend, or is it just because I’m a girl? Tommy Merlyn, if this is some can-men-and-women-really-just-be-friends shit, I swear—”

"No!" Tommy stopped her with a hand on her arm. "I mean, no, this isn’t just because we’re members of the opposite sex who both happen to be interested in the opposite sex _sexually_.” He took his hand off her arm and reached up to scratch by his jaw, a telling nervous gesture. “And, uh, the Oliver thing has actually… happened before?”

Felicity’s jaw fell open, her spine going straight as she stared at him. “ _What_?” Tommy bit his lips together and silently raised his brows as Felicity stared, wrestling with this information. “You and Oliver—you’ve kissed? Like—was it a dare, or were you drunk or something? Do you—are you—”

"Gay?" Tommy interrupted, eyelids lowering in a wry expression. "Not gay, no. Bisexual? Eh, maybe." He shrugged one shoulder.

Felicity just looked at him, and after a moment, nodded once. “Okay. That part makes a lot of sense, actually, and I’m not totally sure I’m surprised.”

Tommy bit back a grin—the sexuality matter hadn’t come up between them in a long time, and he’d known that when it did again, he could count on her not to be weird about it. “As for how it happened? It was a dare kind of, yeah.”

Felicity pulled her legs under her, leaning towards him excitedly. “Did you—did you like it? Did he? Did things—change?”

Tommy rolled his eyes. “Did things _change_? No, of course not. Oliver’s my best friend, just like you, and that’s not ever changing, hell or high water.” He scooted down on the pillows, rolling to face her on his side. “And yeah, I liked it. I don’t know if he did or not. He didn’t hate it.”

Felicity opened her mouth to ask how Tommy knew, but with a grin he beat her to it. “Yes, there was tongue.”

Felicity’s gaze shifted to the bedspread, eyebrows rising and mouth pulling in a shrug of contemplation. “Huh.” She stayed that way for a moment, and Tommy watched the cycle of emotions cross her face as she processed this. “I actually think I’m… jealous? Proud of you? I don’t know.”

Tommy leaned his head until he caught her gaze again, then grinned wide and waggled his eyebrows. “You’re _jealous_ , Felicity?”

She rolled her eyes. “You _know_ I have a thing about Oliver. I always worry he’s your _best_ best friend. And now this is something you guys have done that we… have not.”

Tommy’s chin lifted in surprise. “Wait. Are you saying you _do_ wanna make out? What, to even the score?” He opened his mouth, stopped, frowned, then gently touched her knee. “Felicity, you’ve never even thought about kissing me before. I don’t—I don’t want you to do something you don’t want to just to even the score on Oliver.”

Felicity covered his hand on her knee with her own fingers, head tilting to one side as she stared at him contemplatively. “I _have_ never thought about it before.” She bit her lip. “Give me a second.”

Tommy blinked rapidly, heat flushing his cheeks. “Okay.”

He lay very still as Felicity looked at him, blue eyes skipping over the planes of his face like she was seeing him anew and memorizing him all at once. Her gaze dropped to his mouth, and lingered. Self-consciously, Tommy licked his lips, and Felicity drew in a quiet breath.

Lifting her hand from atop his, she slowly reached out and set her fingertips against his smooth cheek, tracing down the line of his jaw to his chin. Tommy could feel a slow, steady burning rising in him with his pounding heart and, without thinking, he held his breath.

Felicity’s cheeks pinked and she worried at her lip. She nodded her head just slightly and, very quietly, said, “Okay.”

"…Okay?" Tommy warily asked.

She nodded again, meeting his eyes. “Why the hell not? I mean—we’ll still be us, right? Nothing will change?”

Tommy shook his head. “Nothing will change. Just… satisfying a curiosity. Killing boredom.” He grinned.

She laughed and grinned back. “Right. So, um…”

And then, slowly, she leaned forward. Tommy watched in fascination as she licked her lips, and then she was very, very close, and his eyes fluttered closed as her mouth just barely brushed his, the faintest pressure.

She pulled back an inch, hesitated. The hand on his face slid behind his head, and she pushed forward again, the press harder this time, the kiss firmer in conviction.

They exchanged a number of these small, curious kisses, and Tommy’s handed landed on Felicity’s hip as she bent over him, her hair a curtain around their faces. Their mouths parted again, and this time Tommy chased after her, shifting up the mattress to pursue her lips.

She inhaled sharply, and then his mouth covered hers at a new angle as he sat up to even the distance between them, his free hand cupping her jaw, blonde curls threading between his fingers.

Tommy’s lips parted on Felicity’s and she answered in kind. When he questioningly licked along her bottom lip, she responded enthusiastically, drawing a surprised, pleased hum from as she shifted her body closer, both arms coming around his neck.

The kisses deepened, became exploratory and slowly Tommy leaned forward. Felicity moved with him, sliding down against the bedcovers until she lay against the pillows. Tommy stretched out beside her, one elbow bracing his upper body over hers as he guided her chin back to adjust the angle of the kiss.

He gently, curiously bit her lower lip, sucking on it to soothe the sting. Her gasp and arching back broke the kiss with his smile, pleased at the response.

“ _That’s_ good, then,” he murmured.

Felicity nodded, her nose brushing his with the motion, and slipped her arms around his ribs, dragging him closer into another, harder kiss that left him flushed and surprised. Tommy hummed happily as she arched against him again, running one hand up and down her side from chest to hip, thumb just skirting more dangerous territory

Caught up now in the taste and feel of her, he dragged his lips from hers and along her jaw, pressing warm, wet kisses down her throat, pausing to nip under her chin.

Felicity gasped his name, fingernails biting into his back through his long-sleeved t-shirt. A thrill curled through Tommy at the sensation and the breathy sound of his name, and he repeated the little action, then dropped his chin to kiss along her collarbone.

"Tommy," Felicity said again. She pulled at the back of his shirt, then slipped her hands around to cup his face, drawing him up to look at her. "Tommy, look at me."

He did, his eyes deep and dark with a thin ring of bright blue. “Did I do something wrong? Was that—too much?”

Felicity shook her head, then, almost as if she couldn’t help it, dipped down to press another kiss to his mouth. She pulled away, swearing, just as he returned the pressure.

Moving her hands to his shoulders, she pushed lightly at them and began to sit up. He rose as well, watching her carefully for his next cue.

She shook her head again and cleared her throat, feeling the hot flush in her face as she adjusted her tank top nervously. Meeting his eyes, she smiled shyly. “Sorry. I just think we should… probably stop there.”

Tommy nodded slowly, eyebrows pulling together in concern. “So… never again, terrible idea…?”

"No!" she protested, then blushed harder at her hurried response. Tommy only grinned smugly, and she rolled her eyes. "It was good. I liked it—I would kind of think that was obvious."

Suddenly, Tommy cleared his throat and rearranged his seat, draping a hand in his lap inconspicuously. “Right. Yeah. Obvious.”

Looking suddenly self-conscious, Felicity caught his gaze and bit her lip. “I mean—did you? Did you—like it?”

"Yes," Tommy answered, emphatically and without hesitation. "Possibly more than you wanted me to? If throwing the brakes on was any indication."

"No, that’s not—I mean," Felicity sighed in frustration, shaking her head. "Everything was… very good. I just. I don’t know if this was just… curiosity? And if it wasn’t, what does it mean? Do we—do we kiss now? Are we… friends who make out?" She gestured vaguely between their chests with her hand, face scrunching adorably in consternation.

Tommy watched her eyes. “Do you… want it to mean something? This can be a one-time thing, Felicity. If you want it to.” He held himself very still, suddenly afraid to spook her.

She hunched into herself a little, chin dropping, then peered up at him through her eyelashes. “And if I didn’t want it to? Hypothetically. Just… so we know all of our options here.”

Tommy suppressed a smile. “Hypothetically. Of course.” Reaching up, stomach suddenly full of butterflies, he scratched at his ear. “I mean. We _could_ … be friends who kiss. Make out. Whatever. People do that. Right?”

Felicity nodded slowly, as if coming around to the idea. “Yeah. I mean. It can’t just be an urban legend. People who are friends—best friends—who… kiss sometimes. It doesn’t mean they’re _not_ friends, or that they’re something else. It’s just… something that they do. As friends.”

"Yeah," Tommy nodded, agreeing. It was a little like they’d both become bobble heads. "That can be—something we do. Unless you change your mind later or something."

"Or if you do," Felicity added. "And—obviously it wouldn’t be something we did _all_ the time. It’s not like it’d replace—hanging out, or talking, or me kicking your ass at MarioKart. Or whatever.”

"Right." He smiled, trying for reassuring. "It’s just an activity. For if we both feel like it."

"Like Scrabble!" Felicity flung out a hand, grasping onto the idea.

Tommy couldn’t help the grin, which only grew as Felicity stared at him, not catching on. “Felicity. Scrabble?”

She frowned at him. “What? We play Scrabble sometimes.”

"We do." He dipped his chin in agreement. "But that also happens to be a British euphemism…" She stared at him blankly, "… for fucking?"

Instantly, Felicity groaned and threw herself back against the pillows, covering her face with her hands. “That one doesn’t even count, I didn’t even _know_ I was making an innuendo!”

Tommy laughed, the tension between them suddenly dissipating as he dropped onto his back beside her, trying to annoy her by snuggling into her shoulder. “It totally counts, Felicity. That’s three today, nine this week. If you drop three more where I can hear you…”

She pulled her hands away from her face to swat at him in mock aggravation, sighing aggrievedly. “I know, I know. I’ll owe you a bottle of that disgusting scotch you drink.” She held up a finger imperiously. “But if I hold out til Saturday with under twelve slips, _I_ win, Tommy!”

He rolled his eyes, bumping her with his shoulder again as he laced his fingers together over his stomach. “Yeah, yeah, and I have to buy you a bottle of wine.”

"Not just _any_ wine,” she sang, grinning smugly. “One of the _good_ reds.”

Tommy rolled his eyes. “I swear you’re obsessed, you lush. Whatever, it’s only Thursday. You’ll be lucky if you don’t drop three more innuendos _in a row_ by tomorrow night.”

Felicity scoffed. “I can do it! Just you wait, Tommy Merlyn. You’re going to regret tangling with me on this one. I’m going to come out on top.”

Tommy broke into a howl of laughter and rolled towards her, holding up all ten fingers and waggling them at her. “Jazz hands of victory, Smoak! That’s ten! _Ha_!”

Growling her annoyance, she made strangle hands at him, then reached behind her for a pillow. “Shut _up_!”

She started beating him with the pillow, but he was laughing too hard to put up much of a fight. Slowly, she beat him towards the edge of the bed, until he rolled off at the last second and rose smoothly to his feet.

"Put the pillow away! Truce." He held out a pinky, and reluctantly, she rested the pillow in her lap and hooked his little finger with hers. "I’ll make it up to you. Watch Monty Python and the Holy Grail?"

Felicity put her head on one side, considering, then nodded once sharply. “Yes. My turn to laugh.”

Tommy clapped his hands together. “Great. Get the DVD set up, and I’ll go start popcorn.”

He suddenly leaned down and popped a kiss to her lips, grinned cheekily at her wide eyes, and skipped—actually skipped—out of the room, leaving her blushing in the middle of his bed.

**Author's Note:**

> Oh my god, for whatever reason the summary appeared blank with first posting. Jesus Christ. Argh. Now fixed.


End file.
